The penthouse door clicked shut.
Liam stayed frozen on the floor, knees pressed into the hardwood, his hand still reaching toward where Alex had just stood. The air felt hollow without him, stripped of its warmth, its light. It was as if the world had gone silent in one brutal instant.
And then it hit.
The first sob tore out of him with no warning, a sound that barely sounded human. He doubled over, clutching his chest as if he could hold his heart in place before it shattered entirely.
"Alex…" His voice broke around the name, echoing in the vast, empty space of their home. "Please don't… please don't leave me."
The tears blurred everything. His breathing grew sharp, erratic, panic clawing at his throat. He staggered upright but the room tilted violently, sending him crashing against the coffee table. He didn't even feel the bruise forming on his ribs—only the choking realization that Alex wasn't here. Alex had walked away.
